A new internship program is hoping to bring talented interns to Philadelphia startups.
Launching this summer, PennApps Fellows offers students a summer internship from June 2 to Aug. startups includes various activities in addition to internships, such as local Philly tours, tech talks, speaker events networking opportunities.
The program is affiliated with PennApps, Penn's biannual hackathon, and nvigor, another student-led organization focused on fostering connections between students and industries.
Related: PennApps Hackathon Fall 2013
Engineering Sophomores Sean Lynch and Fabio Fleita cofounded PennApps Fellows with Ascanio Guarini, a Swarthmore Mittal, a 2013 Penn graduate and former director of PennApps, and Abhiroop Das, a co-founder of nvigor and Drexel senior, helped the founders get initial contacts and come up with ideas.
PennApps Fellows is sponsored by various startups in Philadelphia, most of which are providing internships spots. Lynch said the founders “reached out to companies that are good fits,” that are medium sized and well-established. These companies include Arcweb, which creates which creates geographic web and mobile event and ticketing startup Ticketleap and consumer research firm a lot of connections with organizations and companies that want to work with us,” Fletas said. At the moment, several organizations like 50onRed and Campus Philly are looking forward to be The exact number will be based on the number of applicants and companies, Lynch said.
Related: PennApps Accelerator to turn computer programs into start-ups
“We try to see if applicants excel in school and have personal motivations,” Lynch said. They are particularly looking for “self-motivated and capable” students who would be a good fit for startups.
Even without full-scale marketing, planned to coincide with PennApps hackathon this weekend, the program is already receiving more applications than expected.
“So many students don’t know or think of startups in Philadelphia,” Fleitas said. “We’re getting great responses from the community.”
He added that PennApps Fellows will help the companies attract talented students.
“We want to bring more attention to Philadelphia because it has a lot of potential,” Lynch said.
The application is open until March 7.
Related: PennApps expands, more than doubles in participation
The Daily Pennsylvanian is an independent, student-run newspaper. Please consider making a donation to support the coverage that shapes the University. Your generosity ensures a future of strong journalism at Penn.
DonatePlease note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.